About Teeth Whitening

Series Summary

Many people today want a whiter, brighter smile. Some can achieve it with proper oral hygiene, regular brushing, flossing and using mouthwash. However, some need a little extra help to get yellowing teeth to return to the land of sparkling white, especially smokers and coffee drinkers. There are a number of products out there that will help turn teeth a few shades whiter, including bleaching agents and toothpastes that contain whiteners. For some, these do the trick; for others, over-the-counter solutions are often hit and miss, providing only temporary results. In this free video series, a dental hygienist provides tips for keeping teeth white and promoting general dental health. Learn what teeth whitening is, how to whiten the teeth at home and what tobacco does to teeth. Find out about teeth whitening kits, laser teeth whitening and other teeth whitening tips. Practice good oral hygiene with this dental health advice.

Video Transcript

"Teeth whitening is one of the most common cosmetic dental procedures that we do nowadays besides our laminate. So the most common questions I have: What do I have to through to get these beautiful white teeth? Either you do an in-office bleaching procedure, which takes about a good hour of your time, but it's instant gratification. You go eight to twelve shades brighter. What we do, first you have a consult with your dentist to make sure that you're a proper candidate; to make sure you don't have any fillings in your front teeth that would not whiten. And after you are a proper candidate, we sit you down, we put a barrier on your tissue, so we don't whiten gum tissue then you put a bleaching solution, a hydro-peroxide, which is a main ingredient in whitening. You put that on and then you hook this up and you do a twenty-minute session with this light right over your mouth and we do up to four; if you have any sensitivity, we do have some vitamin E oil that we can put on your gum tissue, otherwise we'll just wait until you're finished and do a fluoride treatment. Now the difference between at home and under a dentist's supervision; at home, if you do have sensitivity, you can either brush with fluoride toothpaste or just consult your dentist and they can get you in for a fluoride treatment at your earliest convenience."